Railway safety-alarm



{N0 Modl.)

w. B. MORRIS.

RAILWAY SAFETY ALARM. No; 274,635. Patented Mar. 27, 1888.

1 of the city and county of San Francisco, State I way Safety-Alarm; and I hereby declare the WILLIAM B. MORRIS, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

t v RAILWAY SAF ETY-ALARM.

' SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 274,635, dated March 27, 18 83,

Application filed October 30, 1882.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM B. MORRIS,

of California-,have invented an Improved Railfollowing to he a full,clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to a novel safety-alarm for railways; and it consists in the arrangement of a series of levers at intervals in the section of a single track and normally held horizontally, tripping devices at each end of the series for-releasing the levers and causing them to be elevated in the track, and devices on appreaching locomotives for operating thetripping mechanism to raise the levers for subsequently depressing and readju'sting. them, and for coming in contact therewith while raised to give warning, all of which will hereinafter fully appear.

The object of my invention is to provide against the danger of collision upon section of asingle track by giving notice at the farther end of said section that a train has entered the other end.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of track, showing mechanism in the road-bed. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of one of the boxes audits mechanism. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of locomotive, showing devices for engaging with mechanism in road-bed.

Let A represent a section of single railwaytrack, which, for the sake of this description, may be supposed to be in such locality that trains traveling in opposite directions are liable to pass over it within a short time of each other, rendering it of importance for. each engineer to know whether it be clear or not. This section of track may be supposed to be of any lengthsay, for example, one mile.

In the bed oft-he road, between the rails,. near one end, is an elongated box or casing, B, constructed suitably of cast-iron, and pro-, vided with a cover, (not shown,) which should be secured and locked in place. Half-way up the track-section is another such box, 0, and at the other end is another, D, thus separating each a distance of half a mile. This distance may be increased or diminished it found de- (No model.)

sirable. In these boxes are mounted transverse shafts E and E, from which are suspended, by rodsee',heavyweightsFF; Attheendsofeach box are spring-standards G G, having shoulders a, upon which the weights F F are adept ed to rest when raised to a horizontal position. An end of each of the shaftsE projects through the boxes on one side, and a lever, H, is attached to said end. These are so secured as to extend vertically above the road-bed when the weights F are hanging down. With the shafts E, on the other side of the boxes, are connected in like manner similar levers, 11.

At each end of the track-section, though I have shown the device but at one end, is a small casing, I, in the center of the road-bed. Within it is mounted transversely a shaft, h, from which depends a rod or arm, b. A lever, c, is secured to the shaft, and extends up on one side of the box in the same manner as lever H, being held in position by anopposingspring, d, secured to arm b in the box.

Screwed into the ends of the boxes B, C, D, and I are pipes or conveyers J, in which are carriedtheoperating-wires. Awire,K,comm'ences at the end of arm 11, to which it is secured. It thence passes th rough the protectingpipe, and is connected with the top of the spring-standing G in the box B. Another wire, K, of the same system, is connected with the shaft E,

and thence extends outward through the next section of pipe to the middle box, G, where it is connected with the spring-standard Gtherein. Another wire, K is connected with the shaft E in box 0 and passes through the next pipe, and is connected with spring-standard G in the farther box, I). New, commencing at the farther end, (on the right of Fig. 1,) to return, after supposing the existence of a box similar to I, from which a wire extends to the first spring-standard, G, in the end of box D, I show a wire, L, connected with shaft E. in said box and extending through the pipe to box C tolthe spring-standard G, in which it is In like manner a wire, L extends 9 ICO or roller, N, while upon the other side of said cessively runs down all the levers which it bar is pivoted an arm, 0, the lower endof which extends down to the same horizontal plane as the wheel N. The upper end of the arm is connected by a cord, 0, with the hell or other alarm in the cab.

In a suitable position upon the locomotive or tender, and upon the side of the central line opposite to that upon which arm 0 is hung, is pivoted a similar arm, 0. I have here shown it upon the rear of the locomotive. The upper end of this arm is likewise connected with the alarm in the engine by a cord, 0.

V The various devices I have thus described and their uses will .be better understood by the following description. Suppose a train to a be entering upon one end of the track-section A.

down the first of levers H, by doing which the shaft E is turned to raise its weight F upon I H remains down.

the shoulder a of spring-standard Gr. In this position the weight is supported and the lever In like manner the other levers Hare run down, and the weights in each boxalong the line are supported by the springstandards G. The device is now adjusted upon one side; and to complete the description I suppose a train coming in the opposite direction after the first train has passed over the track-section A. It runs down all the levers H, so that both sides are adjusted. Suppose, now, a train enters on the track section from the end over which the first train, before described, passed. It immediately runs down lever c of box I. This causes the shaft h to turn and draw on wire K. This in turn draws back standard G and releases weight F, which, falling, turns shaft E to raise its lever H and draw on wire K, which trips the next weight in box 0, raising lever H by said box, and in the same manner, through wire K the lever H of box D is raised. This is 2111- done instantly. All the levers H are at once elevated. Suppose, now, a train to be about to enter the other end of the track. As it touches the box similar to I and runs down its lever all the levers H upon the other side are raised, and

immediately afterward its arm 0 comes in contact with the raised lever H of box D, and

' the alarm is sounded. It may be that at the 'is backing and another is approaching from the rear.

It will be observed that this device will be Y always adjusted, for each train as it first enters gives notice of its coming, and then sucraised, and leaves them ready for the next train.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- V 1. In a railway safety-alarm, successive levers held horizontally in the roadway, devices connecting them, tripping devices arranged at the ends of track-section for automatically releasing them, and a device on the locomotive for. operating the tripping devices to release and raise the levers, all arranged and combined substantially as and for the purpose herein described.

2. In a railway safety-alarm, successive levers held horizontally in the roadway, devices connecting them, a device on a locomotive for operating the tripping devices to release and raise the levers in the roadway, and a device on a locomotive for coming in contact with the raised levers and giving the alarm, all arranged and combined substantially as and for the purpose herein described.

3. In a railway safety-alarm, successive levers held horizontally on each side of the central line of the roadway, devices connecting those on each side with each other, a tripping device at each end of the-track-section, connected each with the levers on. one side, devices on approaching locomotives to operate the tripping devices at each end to release and raise the levers and other devices thereon coming in contact with the raised levers and giving the alarm, all arranged and combined substantially as and for the purpose herein described.

4. In a railway safety-alarm, the swinging levers H, placed at intervals along the tracksection, rocking shafts E, with which the levers are connected, weights F, connected with each shaft, spring-standards G, upon which said weights are supported, wires K K connecting each rocking shaft with the springstandard of the weight beyond, and the tripping device consisting of the swinging lever a, rocking shaft it, having an arm, 1), spring 01, and wire K, connecting said arm 12 with the first spring-standard, G, in combination with a device upon the locomotive for running down the lever to rock-shaft h and trip-levers H, and for running down said levers H to readjust them, substantially as hereindescribed.

5. Ina railway safety-alarm, the series of boxes B O D, having rocking shafts E E, with levers H H on the sides and weights F F within the-boxes, the spring-standards G G,

for supporting the weights and holding the lelocomotives, all arranged substantially as herein described. e

In witness whereof I hereunto set my hand.

' WILLIAM B. MORRIS.

Witnesses WM. Dom), FREDERICK WADEo A 

